The Stone of Destiny

April 1, 2019
In 1381, a serial killer stalks the prostitutes of London, slashing their throats, stripping them naked, and, most bizarrely, placing blood-red wigs upon their heads. As panic mounts, Sir John Cranston, lord high coroner of London, once again calls upon wily parish priest Brother Athelstan to investigate the heinous crimes. Oddly enough, the murders seem to be linked to a string of vicious attacks perpetrated on innocent Frenchwomen by a gang of Englishmen led by the Orriflame, a mysterious masked henchman wearing women's clothing and a bright red wig, nearly 20 years prior. The Orriflame seems to have resurfaced on the grimy streets of London, and it's up to Athelstan, before even more bodies pile up, to expose the killer and uncover his connection to the deadly explosion of a royal ship bound for France. As always, Doherty displays exceptional narrative flair as he brings the often-squalid sights, sounds, and smells of medieval London to life in another artfully crafted and plotted historical mystery.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

December 15, 2020
The great plague may be over and the rebellion crushed, but London in 1381 is still home to political intrigue and gruesome murders. A monk is killed in Westminster Abbey, and a man known as the Flayer is murdering streetwalkers and then stripping them of their skin, so Sir John Cranston, Lord High Coroner, calls upon his reliable helper in crime-solving, Brother Athelstan, the parish priest of St. Erconwald, to help him investigate. The Flayer seems to be copying crimes from the past, so Athelstan seeks information from the odd and unusually knowledgeable members of his parish whose long memories have helped him before. Then four more monks, all Scots, are found poisoned under seemingly impossible circumstances while Athelstan's parish entertains Austin Sinclair, a Scottish prior who seeks information about the prior rebellion. The Scots still want the return of the Stone of Scone, housed at Westminster Abbey, and royal regalia taken by Edward I in 1296. Two former rebels who are actually spies for John of Gaunt visit St. Erconwald to talk to Sinclair and are found hanged in a locked room. Athelstan must step carefully in investigating murders tied to powerful prelates and Gaunt, the king's uncle and master intriguer. A deep dive into history reveals the motives; Athelstan must discover the methods or join the ranks of the dead. A tortuous, fascinating historical mystery whose finally honed descriptions are not for the faint of heart.

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January 25, 2021
In Doherty’s strong 20th 14th-century historical featuring Brother Athelstan (after 2019’s The Godless), the brilliant, compassionate Dominican friar and his coroner friend, Sir John Cranston, investigate the death of Brother Robert, who collapsed while singing at London’s Westminster Abbey. Another monk sniffed his mouth and detected poison. Brother Robert is just the first Benedictine monk to be eliminated at the abbey. Is it relevant that Westminster houses the sacred Stone of Scone, the ancient ceremonial object revered by the Scottish nation and stolen by Edward I, the ruthless English king, in the previous century? Meanwhile, a horrific killer known as the Flayer stalks defenseless “women of the streets.” As the body count rises, Brother Athelstan uses his knowledge of Londoners great and humble, as well as his sharp observational skills, to draw connections between apparently unrelated events. With consummate skill and pacing, Doherty answers the plot’s mysteries in a series of startling revelations, and the atmosphere of a London driven by ambition and greed is palpable. The prolific Doherty shows no sign of losing steam.